Intervention
by BearChild
Summary: Matt's phone keeps ringing but he won't answer it. Ronnie wants to know why.


**Matt: "I got family. Distant family. Mad family, actually. Don't see them much, thank God. Your parents know you're here?"  
Niamh: "My mum's dead. My dad's a bastard."  
Matt: "Snap. We're related do you think?" **

_**Matt Devlin, 1x03, 'Vice'.**_

* * *

**M.I.U Offices**

**Bow Street WC2**

**Thursday 8 April**

Matt's groaned internally as his phone buzzed again, it's screen lighting up with an incoming call for the fifth time today. Hitting the cancel button, he could feel Ronnie's questioning stare burning its way through the back of his head but was determined to ignore it, jut as he had been ignoring the calls. He was honestly surprised his partner hadn't said anything yet.

The chirp of a text message a minute later was apparently the straw that broke Ronnie's back.

"Mattie, mate, whatever you've done to the poor woman you're gonna have to answer for it at some stage. I'm sure it's the least she deserves after putting up with you for a whole evening."

"Haha," he answered sarcastically, not biting at his partner's obvious curiosity. "Leave it Ronnie." His tone reflected the frustration and anger of his mood. If only it was as simple as a date gone sour. Family was always more complicated.

He could imagine Ronnie's face without having to turn around to see it; peering over the top of his glasses, eyebrows raised and his forehead with that little crease it got when he was confused. Ignoring him, he thought he'd gotten away with it when Ronnie went back to the phone records he was trying to untangle from their current case - a sixteen-year-old who'd been found dead after disappearing from state care. His shoulders relaxing, Matt tried to concentrate on his own work.

Ten minutes later, another buzz. He stabbed at the cancel button viciously.

"Right, that's it, grab your coat." Ronnie stood up from his desk and grabbed his coat from the stand, shrugging into it and dumping Matt's own in his lap before turning around and closing the file open on his computer.

"What?" Matt turned to him confused, glancing over to see if he'd found a breakthrough at all.

"You. With me. Coffee. Now."

"Ronnie-"

"Now."

* * *

**Arlo's Coffee House**

**Bow Street WC2**

**Thursday 8 April**

"Get that in ya."

Ronnie placed the mug of coffee down in front of his partner before taking a seat opposite in the little cafe down the street. He watched as Matt grabbed two sugars and poured them into the mug, stirring before taking a sip. Usually the kid preferred a good cup of tea, but Ronnie had thought he could use the caffeine. He hadn't missed how tired he'd seemed the last couple of days, and while that could usually be put down to a strong late-night work ethic the snappiness that had been oozing from his general demeanour all day pointed towards something more.

Ronnie knew Matt was a pretty private guy. Sure, he was naturally outgoing, often brazenly flirty and the first to take the piss out of himself and his partner, but he rarely straight-up offered insight into his life outside of work. Not without high emotion prodding at his senses or, as Ronnie had learnt on one memorable occasion, a late-night gin-and-tonic too many fueled by an empty stomach and an even emptier week. It was something he respected and was careful to be mindful of. This time, however, whatever was going on was effecting his work. That was where Ronnie drew the line, and he knew that when Matt was looking back at this with a clear eye later on the ultra-professional in him would be glad of it.

Thankfully, he didn't have to wait too long for answers. It seemed that even professional coppers were not immune to the old waiting game, and sometimes even Mattie needed to talk.

"My sister, Elizabeth. _Liz. _She keeps calling me."

Blowing on his own super hot tea, Ronnie smiled wryly. "Hate to tell you son but that bit I already knew."

Matt glanced up from his coffee, an unsaid apology in his eye for the distraction the constant calls had played all day. "She wants to talk. Is insisting, in fact. About my father."

_Uh oh. _Whatever, Ronnie had been expecting, that wasn't it. Although Matt had never directly said anything to him about his childhood, it hadn't been difficult to read between the lines.

"Your dad? I thought you weren't in touch."

It was Matt's turn to smile wryly. "We're not," he answered simply. "Liz's been doing really well the last few months. She was one of the leads in _Twelfth Night _when they put it on at the Globe last summer." His smile grew genuine for a second as he talked about his sister. Ronnie hadn't even known she was an actress. "She was actually really good. Don't tell her I said so though."

Ronnie smiled. It was good seeing this side of Matt – he was so clearly proud of his baby sister.

"Anyway," Matt's smile disappeared as his continued. "She's in this new show that's coming out. Got interviewed in the Sunday paper the other week, all about the character and what the show's about. Nothing ground-breaking, but it was her first big interview and she was excited, so I heard about it." Matt took a gulp of his coffee, and face darkened. "Then on Monday, that earthly wisdom that is _The Daily Mirror, _read only by people who don't care what's really happening in the world as long as it's scandalous, published this awful interview with _him. '_The heartbreaking family split that still haunts Lizzie Devlin two decades on', Matt quoted sarcastically. "He'd called them up, told them these outright lies about how he and mum had had this amicable breakup but he'd stepped back later to _protect _us because, get this, _we _didn't like his new girlfriend. Then says he wants to get back in touch with Liz but is scared he'll be rejected. It's the same obvious bullshit, different decade."

Ronnie sat quietly. Now that Matt had started talking, his job was to listen, not comment. He'd clearly been keeping it pent up all week, and although Ronnie could do little to help the situation he was glad their escape from the office had at least given him the chance to vent.

"Do you know what the worst part is? It's not that every word out of his mouth is a lie, although it most definitely is, or that he can go to a national newspaper and they will publish those same lies word for word." A scary little chuckle trickled out of Matt's mouth and put Ronnie on edge. "Nope, it's that Liz actually _wants _to talk to him."

_Well, shit._ Ronnie knew his friend wouldn't want pity, and he certainly didn't intend to show him any. He was, however, a straight-talker, like Matt himself, and he didn't intend to say anything other than what he thought. He knew it was something that Matt had appreciated in the past - in their work, but also on the rare occasions he had asked an opinion outside of that. He hoped this was another one of those times.

"You think she's going to get hurt."

Matt response wasn't verbal, but clearly said _duh! _"I think she's crazy for even considering it. I was there Ronnie. I know what I saw and what I didn't see. The only reason he's reaching out now is because he thinks he can get something more from her, and somehow he still has this power over us that means it's working."

The use of the word 'us' was interesting, Ronnie thought, his coppers' instincts firing. He wondered if despite everything, despite all common sense telling him otherwise, Matt had thought about it too.

Ronnie nodded thoughtfully. "Well that sucks Matty. It really does," he said sincerely. "Maybe though Liz just needs someone to remind her of that. Got any ideas who might fit the bill?" Matt groaned and pulled a hand through his hair, closing his eyes briefly. He got the message. "Either way, you should call your sister. Tonight."

"I know, I know." He took a deep breath in and exhaled. "I just don't understand why she would want to see him, after everything. Like, surely that's one of the great privileges of being an adult, not having to any more."

"That, I can't answer for you." Ronnie knew that kids traumatised by a family member could have very complicated reactions to that trauma. That it was possible to both love and hate the person who was hurting them, even at the same time. The idea that he and Liz could have a very different reaction to their father reappearing in their lives, even from afar, was not exactly novel. Yet it had clearly thrown Matt into a spin.

As a cop, Matt knew all of this too, but it was different when it was his own family. He didn't feel like reminding him of it right new either. He knew Matt didn't see himself as a victim, even if they both knew that what had happened amounted to exactly that.

Ronnie paused, looking Matt over. He seemed just as tired, but better. Less antsy. Nothing was better, nothing had been solved, but maybe they were a step closer than when they'd started. For now, that would have to do. "Now, have you eaten anything at all today?"

Matt mouth turned up into a half-hearted grin. "I had half a sandwich at my desk earlier."

"Half a sandwich doesn't count, son, and you know it. Now, you finish your coffee while I pick up a couple of those nice looking bacon and cheese sarnies on our way out so we can get something into ya and at least get _some_ actual work done today, what do you say?"

"Yeah, alright."

"Alright then." The little affectionate pat to the head he gave his partner as he walked past on his way to the counter said all he needed.

* * *

_My first completed fic in over ten years! A very different person was writing the last time I published. I wrote this for me, because the gorgeous Matt and Ronnie have once again gotten under my skin recently. I'm well aware this is a small fandom for a show that hasn't been on tv for a few years now. I don't really expect anyone to read it, but I'd love to hear from anyone who made it this far! Thanks for reading!_


End file.
